The major function of absorbent articles such as disposable diapers and incontinent briefs or undergarments is to absorb and contain body exudates. Such articles are thus intended to prevent body exudates from soiling, wetting, or otherwise contaminating clothing or other articles, such as bedding, that come in contact with the wearer. The most common mode of failure for such products occurs when body exudates leak out of the gaps between the article and the wearer's legs or waist to adjacent clothing because they are not immediately absorbed within the article and the absorbent article is not able to sustain a good fit on the wearer such that gaps are created allowing the exudates to leak out of the article. For example, urine tends to be deposited onto the topsheet in gushes such that the urine migrates to the gaps between the article and the wearer where it can come in contact with clothing or other articles and be absorbed by these articles. Additionally, loose fecal material that is not easily absorbed by the absorbent article tends to "float" on the body-contacting surface and work its way past the gaps between the article and the legs or waist of the wearer.
Contemporary disposable diapers have a topsheet, a backsheet, an absorbent core, and one or more cuffs, typically elastic cuffs, positioned to contact the legs and/or waist of the wearer. These elastic cuffs prove effective generally to prevent wicking and overflow from the fluid laden diaper to clothing contacting the edges of the diaper in that the elastic cuffs present a barrier between the edge of the diaper and the contacting clothing, and generally in addition, provide a gasketing action about the legs or waist of the wearer to maintain a seal about the leg or waist and minimize gapping. However, because the forces generated by the elastic members are concentrated along a narrow area resulting in high localized pressures, such elastic cuffs have an increased tendency to indent and mark the skin of the wearer. These skin effects are particularly acute for products worn by infants and incontinent elderly adults due to the tenderness of their skin and its sensitivity to even slight pressures or rubbing actions. These skin effects are even further acute due to the occlusion of the skin caused by such products. The occlusion of the skin by the diaper can potentially lead to skin overhydration. As a result, overhydrated skin is more susceptible to damage from abrasion due to rubbing caused by normal wearer movements and contact with the elastic cuffs. It is also generally known that overhydrated skin is more susceptible to skin disorders, including diaper rash, erythema, heat rash, abrasion, pressure marks, and skin barrier loss. The reduced barrier efficiency of abraded, overhydrated skin can further cause an increase in diaper rash. (21 C.F.R. 333.503 defines diaper rash as "[a]n inflammatory skin condition in the diaper area (perineum, buttocks, lower abdomen, and inner thighs) caused by one or more of the following factors: moisture, occlusion, chafing, continued contact with urine or feces or both, or mechanical or chemical irritation.") To address the concerns of skin disorders associated with wearing diapers and other absorbent articles, the caregiver or wearer often applies skin protective and/or therapeutic products to the buttocks, genitals, anal and/or other regions before placing the absorbent article on the wearer. This procedure usually involves the caregiver applying the skin protective product to their hands, and then wiping the same on the skin of the wearer. To eliminate the need for this wasteful, messy, time-consuming, and easily forgotten procedure, there have been attempts to prepare absorbent articles which contain a skin care substance on the article's topsheet.
One substance that has been applied to diaper products to impart a soothing, protective coating is mineral oil. Mineral oil (also known as liquid petrolatum) is a mixture of various liquid hydrocarbons obtained by distilling the high-boiling (i.e., 300.degree.-390.degree. C.) fractions in petroleum. Mineral oil is liquid at ambient temperatures, e.g. 20.degree.-25.degree. C. As a result, mineral oil is relatively fluid and mobile when applied to diapers. Because mineral oil is fluid and mobile at ambient temperatures, it tends not to remain localized on the surface of the diaper, but instead migrates into the interior of the diaper. Accordingly, relatively high levels of mineral oil need to be applied to the diaper to provide the desired therapeutic or protective coating benefits. This leads not only to increased costs for these treated diaper products, but other detrimental effects as well, including decreased absorbency of the underlying absorbent core.
Even without increasing its level, the tendency of mineral oil to migrate once applied has other detrimental effects. For example, the applied mineral oil can transfer to, into and through the packaging or wrapper material for the treated diaper product. This can create the need for barrier-type packaging or wrapper films to avoid smearing or other leakage of mineral oil from the diaper product.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,489,148 to Duncan, et al. teaches a baby diaper comprising a hydrophobic and oleophobic topsheet wherein a portion of the topsheet is coated with a discontinuous film of oleaginous material. A major disadvantage of the diapers disclosed in the Duncan et al. reference is that the hydrophobic and oleophobic topsheets are slow in promoting transfer of urine to the underlying absorbent cores.
In addition to the migration problems encountered by placing liquid compositions on the topsheet, the prior art has failed to recognize the skin care detriments caused by the use of cuffs, nor of a way to treat the cuffs so that skin care compositions disposed thereon remain on the cuff and transfer to the wearer's skin in an effective amount to provide a skin care benefit. The prior art has also failed to recognize that treatment of an article's topsheet alone does not necessarily transfer the composition to all critical regions of the wearer's skin.
Thus, it would be desirable to provide an absorbent article having cuffs wherein a skin care composition is disposed on the cuffs to provide improved skin care benefits, particularly in skin regions in contact with the wearer during use. The skin care composition must be transferable to the wearer's skin to provide these skin benefits, as well as not inhibiting the functionality of the cuff in the product.
Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide diaper products or other absorbent articles having one or more cuffs with a skin care composition disposed thereon that: (1) have desirable therapeutic or protective coating benefits; and/or (2) do not require relatively high levels of skin care compositions that are liquid at room temperature (e.g., mineral oil); and/or (3) do not adversely affect the absorbency of the diaper product; and/or (4) do not necessarily require special wrapping or barrier materials for packaging.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a diaper or absorbent article having one or more cuffs with a skin care composition disposed thereon, wherein at least a portion of the composition is transferable to the wearer's skin to provide desirable skin care benefits, including less skin irritation, less red marking, therapeutic benefits including a reduction in erythema and/or diaper rash, and/or reducing the adherence of BM to the skin, thereby improving the ease of BM cleanup. It is another object of the present invention to improve the containment/barrier function of cuffs when hydrophobic skin care compositions are used.
These and other objects are obtained using the present invention, as will become readily apparent from a reading of the following disclosure.